oh happy day

I went and got my hair done this morning as my greys were very visible and we’re off to a wedding next week. Between now and then I wasn’t going to have time other than this morning, so off I went. I got myself a maccas frappe on my way there, a little treat just for me! So I sip, sip, sipped on the way to the hairdresser. I sipped while getting my colour done and I then had one of the most brutal hair washes I’ve ever had. I could feel the sickness growing inside me, I could feel all the colour draining from my face. I gritted my teeth and prayed the trauma that was my hair wash would be over soon so I could get to a bathroom. As soon as I was free from that basin and deathlike grip I ran for the loo. I just made it, thankgod as how embarrassing would that have been. When I got back to the hairdressers I told them I’d had to go vomit, and of course they then started quizzing me about if I’m pregnant. I’m not. Trust me. I still don’t know if I drank too much, or if I had too much of the cream on top of the drink, or what caused it but I’m officially taking frappes off the ‘treat’ list for a while. A situation I'd rather not repeat anytime soon.

After my hair was done I went off to browse for a dress suitable for the wedding. I have stuff at home I could wear so it was a no pressure shopping trip, the best kind right? I was a bit worried that everything at home may have been too big but I decided if I didn’t find anything at the shops I would try things on at home this afternoon and get something altered if necessary. I went into a ‘big girls shop’ (Autograph) and started browsing. I had a really nice shop assistant come up and ask if I was looking for anything in particular. I told her a dress for a wedding and she pointed me to a rack full of dresses. She then started showing me things and suggesting things, doing the sales pitch. I agreed to try a couple on despite not feeling 100% and in my head I’d decided I didn’t need anything and would wear something from home. She then turned to me and said ‘so you’re an 18 right’… and it was a statement, not a question. I was shocked, and I laughed at her – in hindsight that was very rude of me!? I said no, I’m not a 18. She looked me up and down and said ‘you're smaller than you think′…. I told her I was in the process of losing some weight so in all honesty I wasn’t sure what size I am. She handed me a two sizes, both smaller than what I am currently wearing and said ‘trust me… go try these’. I tried on the bigger size first, figuring perhaps maybe I was getting close to that size and it would probably be a bit snug. It not only fit, but it was actually a bit big!! What the hell? I walked out of the fitting room for some feedback and was told I looked fabulous, not just by the sales girls but by another customer. It has been years since I walked out of a fitting room looking for feedback. Normally I don’t even try things on, I take them home so I can humiliate myself in private and refund them later if no good. It was gaping a bit on the bust but I figured I could put a pin in it and all would be well. For a laugh I decided to try on the smaller size and well you could have knocked me down with a feather, holy-mother-of-gawd it fit! I took a picture of myself and texted it a friend to ask if I looked ridiculous. She wrote back straight away saying wow, what size is that!! I was beaming as I typed in the size and hit send!! Now I know I was in a big girls shop, and the dress was a stretchy material but man, what a confidence boost and one I really needed. Roll on some more kg loss!!! Oh and just to top it off, it was half price too! BARGAIN!!!

I would share a pic but I am pretty sure I'm gonna wear it next week so I'll keep it under wraps and share some after the wedding. xx

girls and their hair

When I was a child I had really long hair. My hair is very thick and unruly, so when long it's rather like a horses mane. I have many childhood memories relating to my hair, and they're not all good. Sunday night was hair washing night where I would scream the neighbourhood down. I endured endless head lice treatments with that teeny tiny fine tooth comb. My hair was often pulled back so tight and piled on top of my head that I endured headaches and often nearly passed out in the sun at school assembly. One time my younger brother drove his remote control car into my hair as I lay on the floor.... and as I ran around screaming, he spun the wheels more just to make sure it was properly lodged in my hair. I would whimper and cry out when my Mum brushed my hair, especially with a comb or a hard toothed brush and the more I complained the more I got whacked in the head with said comb or brush and told 'I'll give you something to cry about'.... sigh. These days that treatment would result in DOCs being ever present in your life.

As an adult, my hair went grey very early and I feel like I am forever having it coloured. Boring brown mind you but still, it aint cheap. I don't feel like I'm dressed for an occasion without my hair being blow dried by a professional. A good hair style definitely completes an outfit. When I am a millionaire I am so getting my own personal hairdresser. Two daughters plus my own obsession is not going to be kind to the purse, perhaps I should start saving now??

My oldest daughter, Missy Moo who is a mere 18 months has a glorious head of blonde curls, some call it strawberry blonde but I like blonde. For no reason other than my own selfish thoughts, I really don't want her to be a red head and if she is, then be a sexy auburn colour. Hubby's mum had very red hair and seeing all 3 of my kids seem to take after that side of the family, well so far it appears I'm screwed. I'm yet to have her hair cut as a. there has been no need, b. I don't want to cut her curls off, c. I don't want to and d. I really don't want to. Over the last few days though I've noticed she has been pushing her hair out of her face so I started wondering. Then I saw the last lot of photos I took of her and yes, she definitely needs her fringe trimmed at least. So off we went. She sat in Daddy's arms, was caped up and looked up, with big innocent eyes, at the zero personality hairdresser.... 3 snips, no tears and $10 (yes really!!!) later and Missy Moo looks so much older, sniff. I being the sad, pathetic, over bearing mother I am, took photos and asked for her hair so I can keep it. Personality plus grunted at me and shot me odd looks as I did this but meh, who cares. And will I go back there again? Hell to the no! They can shove their $10 fringe chop sideways.

babies playing mummies

Sometimes I wonder if my kids are growing up before their time, before they should. I know for a fact Monkey Man won't ever remember being an only child. If anyone is going to hospital this is most distressing for him, most likely as he associates hospital with a new sister and thus, it's terrifying. Both my toddlers certainly seem to take on older traits and habits before I would expect them to. Both Monkey Man and Missy Moo will grab a towel and wipe Little Miss' mouth when she does an unexpected puke. They love holding the bottle for her or passing her a dummy or toy. Hell they even tell her to 'be quiet' when she's whinging or crying. I've had the odd meltdown over the past few years, found myself crumpled in a corner crying over something stupid and felt a hand on my back and some reassuring pats. Monkey Man did this when he was just a year old and I, in newborn sleep deprived mode dropped a bottle of expressed milk all over the floor. No point crying over spilt milk? When it's breastmilk that you've worked tirelessly to produce and collect, hell yes there is a point to cry over that!! I wonder if they are 'damaged' in some way by being so close together and exactly how guilty I should feel for causing this damage? Then I realise I'm not a shrink, I'll never know or at least not for another 20 years or so and until then I will enjoy watching them grow together. The fact they have to do everything together is annoying but so cute. At a play centre today a smaller boy pushed Monkey Man and I watched for his reaction, as he's been told he's not to shove anyone but especially not those smaller than him... did he shove back? no, he sat down and cried. Ok so maybe thats not the best example of how well adjusted my kids are?

If one of them makes a mess apparantly 'mummy is to clean it up'... why? because thats what mummys do. Hmmm ok, we need to work on this perception. Although they both rush to grab a tea towel to clean up spilt water or bird poo on the deck. Where the bird poo cleaning strategy came from is beyond me.

Missy Moo loves her dollies and babies, she picks them up like they're real babies and puts them in her pram. I watch her fuss over them, rocking the pram to put them to sleep (I assume) and cuddling them to death. She then tries to do the same to her baby sister. Lucky for both parties Missy Moo isn't strong enough to pick Little Miss up but that doesn't stop her trying. She also cuddles her, or puts her in a head lock, at least a dozen times a day, lays on top of her to suffocate her, I mean cuddle her and pokes her all over the head in attempt to ssshhh her. It's love!

My babies are often playing Mummies and I'm choosing to believe it's normal, they're just playing and I'm not harming them for life by bringing them up the way I am, we are... sorry. And sometimes, it's downright funny:

This afternoon I witnessed Monkey Man and Missy Moo changing Buzz Lightyear's nappy. Yes, really. Apparantly he did a big poo and he was stinky. They had one of Monkey Mans nappies and were busily changing Buzz, with Monkey Man giving directions and Missy Moo doing the changing. Still have no idea where the bossiness comes from . . .

the power of the internet

The power of the internet never fails to amaze me. Tonight my father in law mentioned to my husband that he loves reading my blogs. He's almost 70, lives in England and is not what you'd call tech savvy, not to mention I have never spoken to that side of my family about my blog. I believe he got wind of it through my sister in law's facebook page. However he knows about it, I'm glad he reads it and enjoys it.

My step mother, in her 60s and fairly tech savvy I must admit, also reads it. As do many friends and friends of friends.... my little blog, my place to vent and share my life, record my life so my baby exhausted, alcohol frazzled brain has no reason not to remember all the important stuff.... it's being read, by real people??

I've recently become addicted to an iphone app called Instagram. All the young and hip folk out there will say I'm a bit behind the times but meh, I got there in the end. You should check it out if you have an iphone, truly truly addictive... the creativity and photographic eye on some people is amazing, not to mention all the cute pics of cute kids! Anyway, like facebook or twitter, you opt to 'follow' people and see the photos they post. I've had requests from 15 year old boys from Sweden? From a user called 'i like boys' with nothing but what can only be described as gay porn pictures? Promply rejected those requests! And requests from mums all over the world, those I happily accept. We give each other parenting advice, yes really! And at 3am when I have a crying toddler or can't sleep after waking for whatever reason, there is a whole new arm of people awake and online at the same time as me, ready to chat, share pics and talk rubbish. Just what the insomniac needs!! And people have read my blog from there! Amazing!

I participated in an online auction over the last few days and was lucky to win the one item I really wanted. A mini-makeover for my blog! Watch this space as I'm excited to see what my prize entails! The auction was for a wonderful woman who recently lost her husband, mere months after they buried their son. Can you imagine? I don't know this woman but her story really got to me. I would be devastated to go through something like that yet she has shared her story with the world at large, and managed to do so with dignity and grace. I admire her strength and know her 3 little boys are lucky to have such a strong mother. Lisa's story can be read on her blog, Lisa King. She truly is just amazing. A friend, and fellow blogger, Naomi was shattered by Lisa's news and decided to help. Not only did she set up an online donation process which I believe has raised some $32,000 so far, she then went onto set up an online auction with businesses far and wide donating products and services and all proceeds are to go to the King Family. The auction raised another $12,000 plus! Can you believe how generous people are being? I think it would be great if Naomi could take Lisa's story to a national TV program and then let's see how much we could raise for the King Family. Naomi is a busy mumma to 7 cherubs, yes 7, so its not like she's got loads of free time on her hands... but you see thats the power of beautiful people using the internet. Feel free to check out Naomi's inspiring and beautiful blog; Seven Cherubs

I got an email from Herman tonight, a poor man in Nigeria (or somewhere) who is stuck, the poor bugger, with $96 million dollars and would like to share it with me. All I need to do is send him my full name, address and phone number. I of course replied straight away with the obligatory details, I mean how could I ignore such a plight? I'm awaiting my share of millions and perhaps you'll never hear from me again. After all, imagine how many pairs of shoes I could buy with that money? Not to mention the one way ticket to an exotic island complete with buff bodied man servants at my beck and call, while I sip cocktails and wear fabulous shoes. Personal hair dresser ready and waiting to serve me.... *sigh*

Yes, the power of the internet is truly mind boggling, used for good it's a wonderful and beautiful thing. Used for evil by scumbags like Herman, just disgusting. Mind you I still don't understand how people get seriously sucked in to these email scams in the first place?? The grammar alone in the email was enough to make me hit the delete button.

Share my blog, go on, tell a friend - I dare you. And I promise to continue using the internet for good and not evil.... most of the time xx

wearing big boy pants

It rained most of today so seeing we were stuck inside I decided to bring out the big boy pants for Monkey Man and see how we went. He's 2.5yo and showing no signs or interest in toilet training yet but I figured why not seize the opportunity to try. I've read articles and heard stories about parents who put their kids into undies and wham! toilet training done! I can wish right?? I had some big girl pants ready for Missy Moo too, even though I'm fairly confident she isn't ready for toilet training yet. Neither are saying they need to go, the potty is treated like a toy and ridden around the house like a horse or as a hat, and both are happy to stay in wet or dirty nappies for hours. I'm not bothered, I'm not feeling they 'should' be toilet trained, especially not Little Miss who is only 18mo but hey, what's the harm in trying right? And as for both at once, well you see my little people are fairly joined at the hip and I knew if he had big boy pants, she would want big girl pants too. And I was right, so into big pants they went. And as a side note, how cute do toddlers look in little teeny undies!!  Hubby and I both explained that they needed to tell us if they needed to do wee wees, and we'd take them to the loo or onto the potty. Both nodded in agreement and ran around showing each other their undies, much excitement was had. Within maybe ten minutes we had our first accident, Missy Moo wee'd all over the floor. She wasn't bothered much, we cleaned it up and put clean undies on. Monkey Man did it minutes later, I'm sure to prove he could. Within a couple of hours both were into their 5th pair of undies and I was getting a new roll of paper towel out. No big deal, we explained it was an accident and they just needed to tell us when they needed to go. Each wee in the undies however proved more upsetting for each of them. I suspect this was made worse by being tired but rather than push the point we will simply try again in a bit. No rush, and they will get it when they're ready. And tomorrow the big undies go back into the cupboards, minus those in the wash, and I will mop our floors...A part of me thinks it would be great to have both of them toilet trained together, get it over in one go so to speak but the sensible part of me screams why double my work and stress and mopping?? haha we'll just see how we go.

Daily Dilemmas

On a daily basis I face many dilemmas, mostly parenting ones. I often wonder if I'm alone even though I know I'm not. I know other mums face food refusal, tantrums, mess, sickness, attitude, nappy explosions and a never ending mountain of washing... I am dealing with all of this at once, and in multiples of 3 and at times it seems there is no end in sight. I'm not whinging, just venting I spose. Out of all the daily dilemmas facing this mumma, the one that kills me, just KILLS me is mess. Both my hubby and I try to tidy up before we go to bed, I really detest waking up to mess although Mt Foldmore is ignored more times than I care to admit. I HATE watching Missy Moo throw food on the floor, or rub it into her hair. I get so frustrated when I clean and within minutes it's destroyed. Truth be told it often feels that I have 4 children as my husband is the worst offender and he knows it too! I know I'm not alone in those thoughts either, go on admit it. Quite often it feels like the effort is for nothing... I find myself sighing, swearing under my breath and well having complete brain snaps inside my head many times a day, seven days a week!

some examples of what I'm dealing with:

*sigh*

anyone want a toddler that never (ever) shuts up?

My 2.5yo Monkey Man talks non-stop, and I mean non-stop. He's a sponge and absorbs EVERYTHING thats said to him, in his vicinity and even when he's busy playing with loud toys so you think there is no chance he can hear you. He also has the hearing of a bat. He has started that very cute imaginative play, pretending and talking to inate objects. Just the other day his trains were 'pies' and 'milkshakes' and he and Missy Moo were 'eating them all up, yum yum yum'. Hmmm ok then. His soft toys are often going on adventures to the carpark or the shops, off to play with their friends. Any toy with clothes on is swiftly 'underdressed' as 'they no need clothes'. Should I be worried about that one? He can 'read' aka memorise nearly all of the little kiddie books and promptly corrects you if you misname something or try to skip a page. He also tells you if you sing the words incorrectly. It truly is wonderful hearing him chatter and play, and he loves to share with his little sister telling her where to go, how to do something or when to stop. I've no idea where he gets his bossy ways from though *blush*.... I love seeing how close they are, and hope it will be a 3 way bond in a few months time once Little Miss loses her baby qualities and moves more towards toddlerhood.

In the last few weeks he's come out with some ahem, lovely things, and embarrassed me a few times.
Just a few Monkey Man's musings:
"mummy I got a baby in my tummy"
"mummy you cranky?"
"santa brings presents"
"santa bring me Thomas"
"need my wallet, watch, lunch, na-na, go in car to train to work"
"mummy has purple undies"
"me want something nice"
"get your willy out"
"no, I can't. I too busy"
"you push me like this, then again and again. not your turn til I say so"
"yes I hit her. why not?"

We clearly have a few things to work on....He's also started asking me questions about everything, like where did that person go, when are they coming back, why are they wearing that hat, how are you, where did you go. We're not far away from 'but whyyyy?' and you know he's gonna be one of those kids that asks WHY every minute of the day. And from all I've heard thats a very special age!?!?
I think how cute all this is, and then I realise I have another 2 to get through this stage...
pours a bourban and starts chanting to self: this too shall pass, this too shall pass

its all about me - update #1

It's been a while since I spoke about my 'it's all about me' action plan, mainly because Christmas and the whole silly season threw me well and truly off the wagon. I did it to myself because I wanted to enjoy the time so I stopped dieting. I mean after 3 consecutive Christmas' of not eating ham, soft cheeses, prawns or drinking alcohol etc I figured I was entitled to forget points and portion serves and just enjoy. And enjoy I did as that plan saw me put a few kgs on and as January began, clothes were getting tighter, again. I tell you, it's a merry go round that never seems to quit?? So back on the wagon I went. The weekend just gone marked 6 months since my Little Miss was born so what better time to do a bit of an update.
In 6 months I have lost 19kg and an entire dress size (and a half). That's pretty good even if I say so myself! Afterall, it took me 32 years of eating the wrong things, sitting on my ass & 3 consecutive pregnancies to get to where I am and while I hope it won't take as long to get back to a healthy me, I need to be patient.
I'm comfortable in most of my clothes, anything that was too big has been binned, sold or donated. I still have some stuff thats too small but I WILL get into it and I gotta tell you, I'm excited about buying new jeans!!
I think overall I am probably my own worst enemy. I am my harshest judge, and often don't see that I've done a good thing - I see that I could have done better. Well not tonight josephine. I'm saying job well done and keep up the good work, to myself! haha
Could I share pictures of myself and weigh in on national TV in my underwear ala The Biggest Loser?? Ummmmm no and I admire those people for having the courage to stand up there and say 'this is me'. I will share a dressed pic of me though, so this is me last weekend and I hope to keep seeing those scale numbers go down, down, doowwwwwwnnnn.

3 kids immunised at once. Crazy?

My monkeys are all due for needles so rather than delay or stagger the process, I decided to suck it up and took them today, by myself. Surprisingly it went quite well. I was really expecting dramas, and I went armed with goodies like lollipops and freddos, ready for battle... Every parent knows the magical cure-alls that work for their kids! I told them all morning we were going to the Drs and we were going to have needles, and they had to be brave. If they were brave and were both very good we would go to a cafe for a yummy lunch. As we pulled into the carpark, Monkey Man started telling Missy Moo 'we at drs' and 'we get needles and then some yummys'... have I mentioned how much I love the age of 2.5! It's seriously awesome, the conversations we have, he understands basically everything I say and watching the imaginative play, ohhhh my heart just swells and my ovaries ache! Anyway! So Little Miss was strapped to me in the baby bjorn, Monkey Man and Missy Moo were in the pram and off we went. We copped lots of stares and a few 'you've got your hands full' or similar comments in the two minute walk to the clinic, so far it was business as usual. Into the smallest waiting room ever with my bus of a pram and of course its packed. We stood in the doorway as the electronic doors opened and shut right behind me, clearly my ass was setting the sensors off. Oh well. The receptionist continued her personal conversation for at least another 5 mins, if not more. I silently cursed her and prayed that the nurse was on time. Monkey Man took great delight in knocking on the pathology room door, no doubt making those inside jump - fingers crossed there was no blood tests going on! Thankfully the nurse actually came out and called us in before the silly cow receptionist even ended her call. After a few people had to move in order for us to get through in we went. Everyone was weighed and measured, then jabbed one by one, Little Miss, then Monkey Man and finally Missy Moo. The older two watched their baby sister get her jabs and weren't bothered. Maybe they didn't realise they were up next? All 3 did cry, but there was no severe melt downs and frankly I've seen alot better performances from both Monkey Man and Missy Moo. Both were rewarded with a lollipop which stopped the tears in their tracks, Little Miss was given and dummy and she too stopped crying, everyone was happy again. My baby girl is 6 months old and 9.2kg so no wonder she feels so heavy! I then did as promised and took them to a cafe for lunch. We encountered a slight hiccup with the waitress who didn't seem to understand why I'd need two high chairs, what was confusing about it I don't know? She even asked me 'if anyone else was joining me?' ummm no. We were seated next to a table of women who were so noisy, which wasn't a bad thing as I could sternly say names and put that down, don't do that, don't hit each other etc without the whole place hearing me, hahaha. The promised yummy meal was delivered, good old nuggets and chips - Monkey Man ate the nuggets, Missy Moo ate the chips, and a milkshake was shared and all was well. I cut up chips and nuggets while feeding Little Miss in the pram and was feeling very super mum like. The waitress came back and asked me three times if I was ordering for myself but I reassured her I didn't have a spare hand so there was no point. I'm proud of myself for resisting the yummy things on the menu. Come on weight loss!! I felt the eyes of judgement on me, ie how many kids has she got, what is she feeding them etc etc but quite frankly I couldn't care less. They have a treat every now and again and I did promise it today, and yes I have 3, close together. Meh, your problem, not mine. I'm not a total feral, I did clean the table when the kids were done. I really do try to do that as often as I can, I mean my kids make a 'bit' of a mess, I've worked in hospitality and it's not nice to clean up kids mess, hell I'm a Mum and cleaning up kids mess is bloody annoying, especially as you gotta do it multiple times a day! Sometimes the kids are screaming the place down, there's a bottle or poonami situation etc and well you just gotta run to the nearest parents room or the car. Sincere apologies in advance to any restaurant or cafe we leave in a state! We re-loaded the pram and I got Monkey Man to jump on the skateboard so Little Miss could continue to sleep and off to Woolies we went. A few grocery bits were obtained, working off the list in my head and I only forgot one thing, woot! Monkey Man babbled on, telling me every item he saw as we went through the aisles so with his running commentary I'm shocked I only forgot one thing. We went through the check-out and the lady said to me 'oh you've got your hands full'... I politely smiled and said 'yes, I do'. She then asked 'are they all yours?' and seemed genuinely, genuinely shocked when I said yes. Hmmmmm is it really that unimaginable? Really?
Crazy morning, and I'm totally knackered so thank gawd they've all gone down for a nap so I can recharge. And I'm glad I'm getting thinner and fitter so I can handle these outings better as they're only gonna get harder as they get older.

18months old today

Missy Moo is 18months old today, yay!! I occasionally have moments of wow, I have a daughter. Actually I have two, but hey, I have girls so the girly girl in me will live on - hopefully.

some of Missy Moo's 18 month stats:

• she's been walking since 11months old. confidently since about 12.5 mths
• she has long, curly, almost strawberry blonde hair (thanks to hubbys gene pool for the colour)
• she's wearing a size 2 in most of her clothing, almost a 3 in some things (eek!)
• she's wearing a size 5 shoe
• says clearly: no (fave word), ball, na-na, nanny, shoe, baby, yes, please, daisy, cheese, bic (biccie), mummy, daddy, brother, cuddle, kiss,
• she's getting braver when it comes to climbing up onto things, over things, jumping, running, dancing.
• she's gone from quite shy at 12mths old to fairly outgoing, it just takes her a little while to warm up to new people.
• she adores her brother and follows him everywhere. adores her Daddy and when he's in the room, no one else exists.
• she LOVEs to cuddle and kiss all of us, especially Little Miss. sometimes the cuddles are quite violent hahaha but this is due to her not knowing her own strength.
• Upsy Daisy is her favourite soft toy and she runs to the TV when she comes on, and loves to 'dance' with her
• she'll get her first hair cut this month - even though it will just be a fringe trim, its much needed!

love like no other

Today my big girl, Missy Moo is 18 months old. Yesterday her sister, my Little Miss, was 6 months old. Monkey Man is also 2 and a half. Where has the time gone? It honestly feels like yesterday I was dealing with another miscarriage and the painful terrifying, soul consuming thoughts that I might never be a Mum. My fears were unjust but when you're living it, you just don't believe anything else.  3 in 3 years was never the plan but hey, so far my big life plans have not gone to plan - thankfully they've turned out to be better than I could have ever planned.

There are aspects of motherhood that really get me down. For starters, the fact that women in general do not support each other when it comes to parenting. Everyone has an opinion and should be allowed to express that freely. Women should be able to birth, feed and raise their children how they see fit. All these stupid arguments about breastfeeding, where it's done, how old the child is, how showing your ability to breastfeed is putting formula feeding mums down? For fcuks sake!! Grow up everyone and just get on with your own life. Not everyone has a hidden agenda, and some are just sharing their lives & experiences with family and friends. Why does it impact other people so much? Who cares? I for one couldn't care less if you want to breastfeed or formula feed your child, if they have a dummy or not, when or how you toilet train them or whether you feed them vegies and lentils or nuggets and chips. It's your child and your life, live it how you feel apt. I would rather spend my energy worrying about the sleepless nights, teething, sick babies who can't tell you what's wrong, the frustration expressed through whinging and crying (this does my head in!!), food refusal, visits to emergency rooms and Drs surgeries, mummy guilt, the cost! These are definitely a few of my least favourite things and these occupy my thoughts much more than whether you can breastfeed or not.

Realistically the good things far outweigh the bad and I wouldn't change a single thing about my motherhood journey so far. Ok maybe I would have preferred to have an easier start but I didn't experience anything anywhere near as bad as other friends and family and for that I am always grateful. Everytime I feel sad about that part of my life, I just think how much worse it could have been. Bottom line there is ALWAYS someone worse off than you.

My favourite things about motherhood (just a few):

• watching my child demonstrate a new skill, even better if it's one I taught them
• seeing my baby's face light up in recognition, watching them follow you around the room with their eyes - not so great once they are mobile and literally follow you around the house haha
• being on the receiving end of a great big cuddle, ones that start with a run into your arms are the best
• hearing 'mummy' for the first time, less fun when it's said 150 times an hour but that passes
• seeing my children just blossom. 6 months ago we had a birthday party for Missy Moo and Monkey Man, and Missy Moo was scared, nervous and clung to Daddy the entire day. Yesterday at another party we held she was running about, high fiving people, cuddling people... totally different child
• realising that some things are just in you. Pre-kids I was shoe obsessed... addicted even. This had to change due to the loss of one income plus my 3 years spent pregnant and associated swelling so it's not something I have demonstrated to my kids yet. My 18mo Missy Moo LOVES shoes and will not do anything without shoes on, and they have to be selected by her. Nawww
• seeing my kids absolutely freak out and love chocolate (my vice) and love things like vegemite and fish, much to my husbands disgust!
• watching little people observe the world. So far my kids don't see colour, creed, head scarves, birth marks etc... to them everyone is the same. And if you're nice to them they will adore you back.
• seeing the bond my kids have with my Mum, it's much closer than anything she and I will ever share but in a way it brings us closer together
• feeling a love like no other. I love my husband and my family but the love you feel for your children really is a love like no other. I would do anything to protect them, anything. And it pains me to admit it but it really is true that you don't know until you experience it.

So many mothers feel the need to judge and comment on your choice. Why? If everyone just got on with the task at hand, there would be less hostility and more love... sometimes your friend needs you to just listen, not tell them what to do or what you would do. Just listen. And you never know, while you're listening you just might learn something.

January Photo A Day Challenge

If you use Facebook or Instagram you would most likely have seen a 'photo a day challenge' doing the rounds. I'm too am playing along and I'm really enjoying it. I did all of January which was sometimes challenging in itself as most days I don't know what day it is buuuuut in fact the challenge helped me remember with that, hahaha!
I was using Instagram before but this challenge has taken it to a new level. It's introduced me to some awesome photographers and very very creative people. The internet is a wonderful place, the people you meet, the places and things you see. And I'm sure the 15 year old boy from Sweden who requested to 'follow' me was devastated when I promply rejected him.
So I'm playing along in the photo a day challenge for February as well....join in, it's loads of fun, gets you using your brain and is a great way to capture the month that was!
Play along with the challenge here

And just for memory sake; here is my January contribution